The USS Arizona sinks after the Japanese bombing at Pearl Harbor, taking with it 1,177 crew members.

By Emma Rausch

Wednesday, Dec. 7, commemorates “a date which will live in infamy” as it marks the 75th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor.

On Sunday, Dec. 7, 1941, Imperial Japan launched a surprise military strike against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, then Hawaiian territory.

In just two hours, starting at 7:55 a.m. Hawaiian time, 12:55 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, more than 2,000 Americans lost their lives, another 1,178 were wounded and about 188 U.S. aircrafts were destroyed.

The attack sent shockwaves around the country as news spread of the attack. The following day, Dec. 8, the United States declared war on Japan and entered World War II.

Following the Tokyo Trials, the airstrike was judged to be a war crime.

While 75 years have since passed, there are lessons still to be learned from that day and the years that followed, according to two Wabash World War II veterans.

On March 18, the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics honored former Wabash Lady Apache Brooklyn Short. Short received Honorable Mention All-America after the NAIA announced the 2013-14 NAIA Women’s Basketball All-America teams.

In Short’s career as a Lady Apache, she received four varsity letters for basketball, became second on Wabash High School’s all time scoring list, led the Lady Apaches to back-to-back 20-win seasons and back-to-back sectional championships under Coach Scott Bumgardner, who Short says still keeps in contact with her.

“[I] definitely [would like to thank] my high school coach, Scott Bumgardner,” Short told The Paper. “Throughout my college years, he still contacts me; we still talk. He’s helped me out through high school and college too.”

Short’s former coach, Purdue Calumet’s Head Women’s Basketball coach Tom Megyesi, first contacted Bumgardner after observing Short at the Top 100 workout the summer before her senior year.

“He gave her a glowing recommendation,” Coach Megyesi said. “When Mr. Bumgardner mentioned that not only was Brooklyn an outstanding basketball player, she was also an outstanding student, class salutatorian, I knew I needed to pursue her for my team. Brooklyn was all that Coach Bumgardner said and more.”

As a freshman at Purdue Calumet, Short saw action in all 30 contests of the season. As a sophomore, she was named First Team All- Chicagoland’s Collegiate Athletic Conference and Academic All-CCAC. In her junior year, Short was named honorable mention All-CCAC, Academic All-CCAC, and Daktronics NAIA Scholar Athlete. Now, as a senior, receiving the NAIA honorable mention All-America is important to Short because “it’s more nationally recognized, which is kind of neat,” according to Short. “It does mean a lot as a senior, getting that last award in there.”

As a math major graduating in May, Short isn’t sure what her future holds career-wise. She will be getting married in August and is currently looking to move home after graduation and start her new life with her fiancÚ, Tyler. Talking about her basketball career and looking towards her future did give her some insight for student athletes looking to be as successful as she has been on and off the court.

When asked what advice she would have for girls who are in the same position she was four years ago, Short simply said: “You need to get your priorities straight. Keep up the hard work. Stay determined. Follow your heart.”

Short would like to thank her parents.

“They made the two-hour trip to my games, almost every game, which I never would have expected them to do.

“My dad and Tyler made the trip to Iowa to watch me play in the national tournament. I just played two games there, but they made the 10-hour trip. It means a lot.”

In addition to her family and fiancÚ, she would also like to thank her aunt, Kelly Smith.

Lastly, Short would like to thank the fans that came out when Purdue Calumet played Huntington University.

Short noted that game, with a hometown crowd, as one of the proudest moments of her basketball career.

“A couple year’s ago, we played Huntington University, and since it was so close to home, I had a lot of fans there, just for me. That really meant a lot, to get all that support from people that were there in high school to watch me play.”

“She’s an outstanding person,” said Coach Megyesi. “Everyone on the team looks up to her and respects her decisions and opinions. She was the coach on the floor. I don’t know if I will ever find another person like Brooklyn. She is exactly what every coach wants; smart, funny, studious, athletic, empathetic and also willing to go that extra mile. She will be missed.”

The substation, located near the Red Bridge Marina on Mississinewa Reservoir Property, lost power at that time, roughly about 6 p.m.

REMC personnel discovered a bullet hole in the substation transformer that penetrated the radiator. Other bullet damage was apparent on the outside of the transformer, but did not penetrate the outside of it.

Investigators from the Indiana State Police, with help from the Wabash County Sheriff’s Department, are probing an early morning shooting Tuesday, Nov. 29, near Lagro.

According to Sgt. Tony Slocum, Indiana State Police Public Information Officer, at approximately 4:09 a.m. Tuesday, officers from the Indiana State Police, the Wabash County Sheriff’s Department, and the Wabash Police Department responded to a 911 call reporting a shooting at 17 N. State Road 524, Lagro.

When officers arrived, they found evidence that the exterior of a home at that location had been hit with bullets.

Businesses and building owners continue to work with local and state officials as the investigation into the Nov. 19 fire on Main Street continues.

According to a release from North Manchester Fire Department Chief Cam Kissinger, the cause of the fire at 216 E. Main St. cannot be determined due to the extent of the damage to the structure.

Kissinger said the damage is estimated to cost between $275,000 and $310,000, using data from The Schneider Corporation’s Beacon public access website. A total of five addresses are included in the damage estimate including 214 E. Main St., located across an alley west of the location of the fire.

The NMFD received a call around 4:40 a.m. on Nov. 28 reporting a fire at the former location of The Brewhouse, 216 E. Main St. Units on the scene found smoke and fire at the rear of the building. By the time the fire was extinguished, the building was destroyed.